Phish Friday: The Best of Summer Tour (in your own words)

Now that Phish summer tour is come and gone, and we have to anxiously await confirmation of these fall tour dates that seem to be making the rumor rounds as of late. We’re told the real dates are coming early next week, and we’ll be on that like white on rice. Ahead of that, we’re already nostalgic on the amazing summer tour that the band just graced audiences with nationwide (kinda). Phish 3.0 as the kids call it, and it’s clear it looks, feels and sounds a whole lot different than a lot of people are used to. And if there was one thing that this summer tour did for fans is it continued to give fans something to go crazy about. Discussions ran rampant. Setlist predictions were almost never right, and yet exactly predictable at times to the point of annoyance on behalf of the jaded vets. It was a fun time to be following this online, and it was immediately difficult to separate fact from fiction in the reviews and tweets that rolled in every night from the people following closely.

So, instead of trying to find my way through the talking heads online and matching that up with every setlist glitch or bust-out, I decided to tap my own little social network here to get a sense of what really stood out for people after the summer tour. Thanks to my immediate crew for helping out, we got the word out that we wanted a few thoughts on what people will remember most from the shows they saw, the shows they heard, or the online discussion that they remember best. Read on for the thoughts from my friends and their friends on what went down this year, and feel free to drop your own thoughts on Twitter (@LiveMusicBlog) or drop a comment here to continue in the discussion…

Note: a small amount of this is edited for readability and general context, but for the most part the goal was to leave this stuff unedited.

From John Z…

hahaha, lets see…

My 30th show in Hartford opened with my favorite song, Punch You In The Eye. I knew I was in for a good night, especially since my beloved Boston Celtics were about to topple their arch-rival Lakers for an 18th World Championship. I couldn’t pull myself away from the concourse TV during set break as I watched what I thought would be my team’s 2nd title in 3 years. Lights go down, crowd erupts, yet I remain there, glued to the action happening 3,000 miles away. I hear Party Time>Down With Disease>Sand in the background. My lower body seemed to be back in section 300 as my feet tapped along to the groove. My upper body was trapped with me in a makeshift sports bar, hands rubbing my face, fingernails being chewed and not nearly enough fist pumps. My team was on the verge of an epic collapse. As soon as purple and gold confetti started to fly, I aimlessly made my way back to my seats to the suddenly depressing lyrics ‘We are so very sorry, there is little we can do…. but swat them”. As I made my way down the aisle I heard that riff I’ve heard so many times before, the beginning to Mike’s Song. I looked up to see Kuroda’s light show and cracked a smile. By the time the ‘Shine A Light’ encore was serenading me, I was singing along, dancing… and for that short time, I had managed to forget about the fact that my Celtics had lost to the Lakers. Thank you, Phish, for helping me through the quickest recovery I’ve ever had after watching a gut-wrenching loss by a team I care too much about.

SAND @ Hartford, my 50th show, and first ever Sand… the silver lining in a Celtics GM7 loss to the Lakers… That loss hurt as bad as the subsequent cut > Horse …

Then, what imo first hinted at the Phish 2010 hijinks, the Tweeprize double encore in Hartford & Tweeprize sandwich at SPAC…

For the 2nd leg, it was the moment Cities lifted off to Type II inspired by those ancient greeks! The Simple was anything but. I’m not sure I came down from my high until the Quinn encore amidst the misty mountains of Telluride! Once your smile gets that wide, reality pats you on the back…

Continued…

Another memorable moment was the whispers throughout the Greek as everyone piled in on the first night… on stage was a new guitar…

Later we obviously found out thru “Stage Banter” that it was a new Langedouc that Paul had created for Trey… Trey’s magic Ocelot guitar would take us to the unknown and silently but assuredly kill the whale

I almost forgot about “Stage Banter;” huge bust-out.

From Adam B…

I was dead center near the back of the pavilion for both Alpines. Night one was my favorite of the summer, and maybe of all 19 shows I’ve seen so far. It started off good and just kept getting better, ending with a sick Sneakapaug, the always welcome Bug, and an unexpected Quinn encore. But the image that will stay with me was seeing Trey getting all excited as he geared up during the “pre-nirvana” section of YEM during Alpine night two. He was literally bouncing up and down and looking like a little kid. Then “nirvana” hit and it was accompanied by roars from the crowd and several glowstick explosions from within my field of vision alone. It was a uniquely sublime moment that can only be experienced at a Phish show.

I’m really bummed I couldn’t go to Alpine; I saw four shows there before the band had broken up.

From Josh D…

I’ve been seeing Phish for 13 years, and throughout that time I have had one song atop my wishlist; Sneaking Sally. Last Saturday at my 30th show, they let her rip! I am telling you I totally felt the endorphins moving through my brain and body, it was incredible and worth the wait!

My first show was in the funk ’97 era, and right now they are playing as smoking as I have ever seen them!

It always seems to work out that I see them in 3 show runs, and usually one of those shows is a lowlight compared to the others – not this time. All 3 shows that I saw last weekend were scorchers.

He’s talking about the Deer Creek > Alpine run and specifically the first night of Alpine, arguably the most impressive show of the entire summer.

From Flip…

The Connection, Undermind and Curtis Lowe from CMAC were my moments, all firsts, Walrus also, but too a lesser extent. That and Divided Rye homebrew. :oops:

Also liked Ocelot from 6/29…slow and funky.

Anyone else feel strongly about CMAC? It seemed to get overshadowed by about everything that has followed it, but at the time I remember thinking that every show just kept getting better and better.

My favorite moment was at Merriweather Night 1, believe it or not. During Stash, I realized that the lot molly I took was actually REAL. Somehow soon thereafter, I began to enjoy BDTNL for the first time. I danced furiously as most people around me groaned and bitched about them playing a garbage tune. No one seemed to be having as much fun as I was at that point in time. I literally believe, for a brief moment, I was the happiest man in Columbia, Maryland. Later that night, I did a tank of nitrous and ate some pink champagne. Once again, I was all smiles.

Uhm…no comment.

From Sean F…

“Dude, this is Mike’s band, what the fuck is Trey doing???”

“You didn’t have a good time unless you cried.”

“That’s how we dooooooo!” (replacement of the actual lyrics “Gotta Jibboo and you keep on drinking, too” to Gotta’ Jibboo) by Mr Cook

All the moments, bust-outs, etc. speak for themselves, but these were some pretty funny quotes

Can we make “you didn’t have a good time unless you cried” a t-shirt?

From Kelly…

Not to mention… Scoring an old friend a ticket for face four hours before Greek N2, making it his first Phish show ever!

I’m not exactly sure what this one means, so maybe it wasn’t intended for prime time…Sarah, care to enlighten the rest of the group?

From Patrick…

from the southern leg

raleigh
it was a long drive from the ham, but splitting it up was a good idea, a good nights rest before the madness. the llama i wanted opened the run. everything else was a bonus, & bonus it was: have mercy! & an incredible jam in light up. hanging out with chris & dennis post show gave me new appreciation for tapers & their dedication.

charlotte
the traffic en route was unneeded stress after a later than anticipated start, that all ended well. buried alive set I opener, drowned set II opener, really, this set on paper just looks bizarre & evil & it was! a slightly sloppy vultures, but i still love the tune. wasting a request on Mexican Cousin, i can’t let this go. carini> fuck your face!?!?!?! this confused lots of people at first, but the confusion & chaos turned into sheer enjoyment. closing the set with an incredible YEM i didn’t expect to see till ATL. Proud Mary & Get Back vocal jam with A Day In the Life encore. Perfect.

ATL I
the venue is amazing, but our pav seats weren’t that great. met up with a much bigger crew for these 2 nights. headed for the lawn 2nd set. jays first shows. this setlist was odd to me. loved the Destiny, flaws & all, always love Mountains in the Mist, enjoyed the Tweezer & Hood & Tweprise, but nothing else really grabs me about this show looking back.

ATL II
even more friends on the lot today. its a 4th of july party & family reunion, at a Phish show. much better lot scene today. in the Pit for set 1, Star Spangled Banner was great, what could be more patriotic than this? i’m a sucker for PYITE, but into Forbin’s> Mockingbird? yes please. good jiboo to close the set, Phish agrees, watch the video. headed to lawn for 2nd set. 2nd set, where to start. i liked the whole set, but Mike’s Song > Tela, Harpua> Killing in the Name[> Harpua> Weekapaug Groove. the energy during KITN was incredible. the whole place erupted. Lot fireworks, it was like a warzone out there, in the best way possible. such a great night & run of shows… i don’t ever remember being this exhausted & sore from dancing. i must be doing something right.

the greeks

Greek I
a great start of a wonderful 3 nights. is the poster line really this long already? a few gems of advice: check your perimeter, be respectful, know when to keep you mouth shut, and everything will work out in the end. now onto the show. separated from the crew first set, but really enjoyed the Divided & Funky Bitch. regrouped with the crew 2nd set in a prime location. i know everyone has gushed over this Maze, but i would let it do bad things to me, it was that good, aurally & visually stunning. Phish concurs, watch the video. the bass in Tweezer Reprise hitting was incredible. the whole place reverberated in the funk.

Greek II
mmm… google lunch. an hour earlier, and further back in the poster line? at least we came prepared. great spot for the show tonight, kangfirmed. its also been said i’m sure, but Cities> Moma was the dance party. what dance did you do? hmm… where’s Pete? set II Mike’s> Simple. absolutely a blast. the phrase “we’ve got it simple” really hits me here. i have always loved that line, and in this moment, its perfectly true & relevant. can i do this every night?

Greek III
another hour earlier for a poster is rewarded with a spot in the shade. an interesting game of spades. an ADA accessible door saves the day. todays gem of wisdom: eat a good meal, drink tecate slowly, consume lots of water & avoid cookies. i called Army of One which i distinctly remember, hearing it, not so much. Set 2 was incredibly vivid & distinctly memorable, Gumby for one, the ambient Light, pun intended, 2001> Suzy was great, including the Suzy Reprise, but i miss hearing Sharon when i hear this song now. an incredible end of a brilliant 3 night run…

“Fuck Your Face” bustout means nothing is off limits these days…even “Leprechaun”. But “Dear Mrs. Reagan” is a shitty song, so please don’t bring that one back.

What happened to the summer of covers 3.0 and all the new songs besides “Show of Life” and “Summer of ’89” in Leg 2? Is “Idea” the “”Spices” of Phish 3.0?

Finally got a non-soundcheck “Funky Bitch”. Let’s see how many more shows it takes to see “Gumbo”.

Yeah, what did happen to those new songs and covers? And can we agree that they should bring “Jennifer Dances” back before “Dear Mrs. Reagan?”

From Greg…

Cities from the Greek.
really, that’s about it.

Yep.

From Jim…

every second of berkeley, from the poster line to the encore each night, and also being at the greek with my cousins and lotman!!!

camden night 1 set 1, chalkdust, 2001 and alumni

hartford dwd > sand, and reprises

spac father’s day show

going out on the road to JB with a new tour buddy

Man, you caught some good ones this year. Kudos.

From Jason …

DC1 – Drowned jam slash glowstick war was fantastic – sick Hood thru Encore too. Just as that helicopter with the spotlight was just behind the lawn they went into N02 almost like it was planned….so insane – standing next to wheelchair dude during Kung was aquardto say the least

DC2 – Probably my favorite show of the run and they do it right by capping my evening with a Slave. Loved Guelah Papyrus, alway love an Axilla – Fucking meatstick>mango n moonroxhodahoice! :twisted:

AV1 – Right when they dropped into What’s the Use? the moonrox were ficing me and Kuroda was just fucking slaying me. I know this is heralded as the best show of 2010 by many, and listening back it definitely is great, but I was zombieficed for most of the night due to the previous night’s antics and was overall in a world of hurt. Loved that the Lanes got their Quinn.

AV2 – Insane-o Bowie – Ghost and ensuing glowstick war was sick from the lawn – Piper>2001 Close Encounters tease was :o 8) . My one sober show and it was fantastic all around.

Phish fans can party a bit hard, and you don’t want the moonrocks affecting your sick-ass “Down with Disease > What’s the Use?” I’m pretty sure my head would have exploded seeing that live anyway.

From Aandrew…

Fuck Your Face and Quinn at alpine

From Mar…

undoubtedly DWD-> What’s the Use -> Scent of a Mule from AV1

some of the best Phish I’ve ever seen

I haven’t seen a bad word written about Alpine Night 1.

From Greenteeth…

I went to the 7/3 show. I love “Rift” and got to hear it. They played it poorly but it was early in the show and it whipped the crowd into a frenzy. The “Tweezer” in the second set couldn’t have been played crisper even if they were in the studio.

Studio quality Phish live? I’ll have to relisten to that one.

As for myself, I think the one thing that really gets me about this summer tour was how fun it was just chilling and watching the setlists online. If there was a stream, great, but I was mostly entertained by the tweet fests that begin when the band hits the stage. All of it makes me giggle. It’s all very technologically exciting to me. I spent many a beautiful night in my sun-drenched dining room while listening to the streams, cooking dinner, hanging with friends, whatever. And getting to see three shows with just a quick train ride and scoring those tickets via mailorder, thereby making those three shows just about a million percent hassle free for me, I can’t say I can complain about any part of the experience. “Cities” was my musical moment and the one I cared to re-live the most when I got home, but the moments spent with tons of my friends, tons of my internet homies, and time spent laughing along with my Twitter stream (as nerdy as that sounds), I seriously had a great summer. Thanks to my friends and homies for helping me put together this little roundup of a post.

I’m off to a little river-side community this weekend to disconnect with friends for a bit, and when I get back we’ll likely be just biding our time until more Phish news reaches the internets. Enjoy your weekends and we’ll see ya next Monday…

Well, it’s been a long road with Phish since ’96, and 95 shows in the books for me. Jones Beach was a great place to bring friends together. It really is just getting better. I can see now that succinct jams are the mainstay, but so what? Ten years ago I would expect a 17 minute Halley’s or a mind-numbing, type 3 drawn out DWD, but now I realize that we could have that in smaller bite-sized pieces. Trey’s sobriety is the key to the future.

B-Rad

Well, it’s been a long road with Phish since ’96, and 95 shows in the books for me. Jones Beach was a great place to bring friends together. It really is just getting better. I can see now that succinct jams are the mainstay, but so what? Ten years ago I would expect a 17 minute Halley’s or a mind-numbing, type 3 drawn out DWD, but now I realize that we could have that in smaller bite-sized pieces. Trey’s sobriety is the key to the future.

Justin

After taking a hiatus of my own after ’99, seeing my first show in over a decade at Hershey with my family and friends will always stand out. SOAM is one of my favorite tunes and I hoped they would play it. Sure enough it closed out the first set which was full of old school classics. The second set contained some of the best jamming I’ve heard from Phish in years with Drowned>Tweezer>Twist, Piper>Free= philthy grooves!
Went to the second night of Camden and you gotta love an Alumni Blues>Letter to Jimmy Page>Alumni Blues opener! First time hearing the tunes and they brought me back to my college days of the late ’90’s. From there it was all about the 2nd set with this show, although the Sloth and SOAM were tight. Best CDT ever heard live and some great improv by the band that should please the toughest phans who are whining about the boys not jamming enough…they can’t jam EVERY song folks but when they do they do it well! Fireworks exploded over the Ben Franklin bridge in the distance while Phish played and this Philly boy was groovin! An uplifting Caspian was nice to hear before the dance party began–2001 with MJ teases and licks all over the place! I hadn’t thrown down that hard since ’98 and it felt good. Shine a Light sent us off into the night on a high note.
After this I was resigned to wait until Fall to see them but I had the itch to see more and was privledged to score tix to the first night of Jones Beach. On the night of the show found a ticket for night two (thanks Meredith, John, and Ben!). I’ve heard that Alpine shows were the best of the tour but I still had a ball at the final two shows of the 2010 summer tour. Night one set one was highlighted by hearing Cities and Wilson for me, and Walk Away was a first and a great classic rock groove while the Reba jam was solid as well. It was an upbeat first set that set the stage for a tight second set from start to finish. Rift was one of the albums that turned me onto Phish and I was loving the Lengthwise>Maze opener.The Mike’s was nasty and the Weekapaug “sandwhich” was delicious highlighted by some excellent improv jamming outta BWDTNL and a rolicking Rock and Roll. Loving Cup was always one of my favs and a nice set closer.
Night two gave me my first Guelah which sent a shiver down my spine and while some were down on the jam, I have been digging Ocelot and thoroughly enjoyed the jam. This song really reminds me of the Dead. Very tasty groove in Bathtub before Tube! Gotta be one of the best Phish songs and tops on my list so I was beaming again. Will admit, I would have loved to have cut out Joy to let the boys jam on some Tube funk but it wasn’t meant to be. Like I said before, they just can;t jam out everything, but it is Tube! Antelope was a climatic ending to the set. Once again I enjoyed set two from start to finish. Rockin Axilla to open and a fun Timber with some psychadelic, jazzy, rock n’ roll from the boys. The Light jam was a highlight of the two nights along with BDTNL from night one. My Friend, My Friend was another great insert from the Rift album (best Phish album?). Beautiful Hood jam and Horse>Silent before an always good to hear Y.E.M. I know we all knew it was coming, but this tune is a Phish classic!

Great summer overall spent relaxing with good friends and enjoying some amazing shows. Phish brought back a lot of memories and
created some new ones as well. It will never be “97 or ’98 again for us and the band, we’re all different, but still the same and with a new generation of ‘heads following the band. The 90’s may always be the the “high” point for Phish and its music, but I’m glad they;re back on the road and having fun in the “3.0” era; it is new but still the same…see you in Philly in the Fall!

Justin

After taking a hiatus of my own after ’99, seeing my first show in over a decade at Hershey with my family and friends will always stand out. SOAM is one of my favorite tunes and I hoped they would play it. Sure enough it closed out the first set which was full of old school classics. The second set contained some of the best jamming I’ve heard from Phish in years with Drowned>Tweezer>Twist, Piper>Free= philthy grooves!
Went to the second night of Camden and you gotta love an Alumni Blues>Letter to Jimmy Page>Alumni Blues opener! First time hearing the tunes and they brought me back to my college days of the late ’90’s. From there it was all about the 2nd set with this show, although the Sloth and SOAM were tight. Best CDT ever heard live and some great improv by the band that should please the toughest phans who are whining about the boys not jamming enough…they can’t jam EVERY song folks but when they do they do it well! Fireworks exploded over the Ben Franklin bridge in the distance while Phish played and this Philly boy was groovin! An uplifting Caspian was nice to hear before the dance party began–2001 with MJ teases and licks all over the place! I hadn’t thrown down that hard since ’98 and it felt good. Shine a Light sent us off into the night on a high note.
After this I was resigned to wait until Fall to see them but I had the itch to see more and was privledged to score tix to the first night of Jones Beach. On the night of the show found a ticket for night two (thanks Meredith, John, and Ben!). I’ve heard that Alpine shows were the best of the tour but I still had a ball at the final two shows of the 2010 summer tour. Night one set one was highlighted by hearing Cities and Wilson for me, and Walk Away was a first and a great classic rock groove while the Reba jam was solid as well. It was an upbeat first set that set the stage for a tight second set from start to finish. Rift was one of the albums that turned me onto Phish and I was loving the Lengthwise>Maze opener.The Mike’s was nasty and the Weekapaug “sandwhich” was delicious highlighted by some excellent improv jamming outta BWDTNL and a rolicking Rock and Roll. Loving Cup was always one of my favs and a nice set closer.
Night two gave me my first Guelah which sent a shiver down my spine and while some were down on the jam, I have been digging Ocelot and thoroughly enjoyed the jam. This song really reminds me of the Dead. Very tasty groove in Bathtub before Tube! Gotta be one of the best Phish songs and tops on my list so I was beaming again. Will admit, I would have loved to have cut out Joy to let the boys jam on some Tube funk but it wasn’t meant to be. Like I said before, they just can;t jam out everything, but it is Tube! Antelope was a climatic ending to the set. Once again I enjoyed set two from start to finish. Rockin Axilla to open and a fun Timber with some psychadelic, jazzy, rock n’ roll from the boys. The Light jam was a highlight of the two nights along with BDTNL from night one. My Friend, My Friend was another great insert from the Rift album (best Phish album?). Beautiful Hood jam and Horse>Silent before an always good to hear Y.E.M. I know we all knew it was coming, but this tune is a Phish classic!

Great summer overall spent relaxing with good friends and enjoying some amazing shows. Phish brought back a lot of memories and
created some new ones as well. It will never be “97 or ’98 again for us and the band, we’re all different, but still the same and with a new generation of ‘heads following the band. The 90’s may always be the the “high” point for Phish and its music, but I’m glad they;re back on the road and having fun in the “3.0” era; it is new but still the same…see you in Philly in the Fall!

MorganicSF

The most indelible moment of the tour for me was the moment that Cities dropped at Greek night 2. Phish had played the tune last year at Shoreline and it really struck a chord with the crowd. In these anxious days, as the future seems so dark and uncertain, the plea to “find yourself a city to live in” served to remind people that we at least are on to something here in the Bay Area. Phish felt that last year, and you could tell they were excited to drop the tune at the Greek (listen to Trey counting off the beat). What ensued was more than a funky jam and super-dance party; it was a true ordeal that brought those in attendance into a common understanding.

San Francisco is and will continue to be the epicenter of this unprecedented transformation we are currently experiencing. Anyone who was at the Greek felt the great power that we can create together. This Cities served as both an outlet and a catalyst for that power. You know Phish could feel it. We have found ourselves a city to live in.

MorganicSF

The most indelible moment of the tour for me was the moment that Cities dropped at Greek night 2. Phish had played the tune last year at Shoreline and it really struck a chord with the crowd. In these anxious days, as the future seems so dark and uncertain, the plea to “find yourself a city to live in” served to remind people that we at least are on to something here in the Bay Area. Phish felt that last year, and you could tell they were excited to drop the tune at the Greek (listen to Trey counting off the beat). What ensued was more than a funky jam and super-dance party; it was a true ordeal that brought those in attendance into a common understanding.

San Francisco is and will continue to be the epicenter of this unprecedented transformation we are currently experiencing. Anyone who was at the Greek felt the great power that we can create together. This Cities served as both an outlet and a catalyst for that power. You know Phish could feel it. We have found ourselves a city to live in.